VIDEO: Exercise & ME-CFS Parts 1 and 2 by Dr. Klimas

Dr. Nancy Klimas, MD, director of the CFS Clinic in Miami, has developed a three-part video series to help people at risk of post-exercise malaise (what the new International Consensus Criteria for ME call ‘post-exertional neuroimmune exhaustion’. Following are the first two:

The first video (VO2 Max Testing: http://vimeo.com/26783830) explains how, through VO2 Max testing, a safe and effective exercise program can be developed to ease the symptoms of ME/CFS (more commonly known as 'chronic fatigue syndrome'). Connie Sol, physiologist, then conducts the testing on a patient who has been afflicted with ME/CFS for nearly 20 years – to determine how hard and how fast she can safely exercise.

The second video (Post-VO2 Max Testing Consult: http://vimeo.com/27073084)gives you the opportunity to listen in on part of the post-testing consult in which the test results are explained and the basis of an individualized exercise program are outlined. That is, the VO2 Max testing results are used to develop a tailored exercise program for a person with ME/CFS – one that will not overtax the body and result in a crash. It starts with learning your normal resting heart rate, checking your heart rate (HR) daily, only exercising when it is normal, and monitoring it during exercise using a heart rate monitor to ensure you do not exceed your target HR. (The HR monitor illustrated is a simple wrist-watch style.)

In the third video, still to come (Implementing an ME/CFS Exercise Program), you'll learn how to put the program into practice and adapt it to your own situation